Drocell's Story
by MadamParadoX
Summary: A possible past for Drocell Cainz, Like how he became a puppet and why. It takes place in a town outside of London when Drocell was around the age of 12.


The crowd cheered wildly as he set the puppets aside and bowed modestly. A flurry of coins and bills were thrown at his feet and Drocell smiled cheerfully. He collected his earning and made his way back into his fathers doll shop. His mother was at the door to greet him, though her greetings were usually full of scoldings.

Her hands were placed firmly against her hips, " Drocell sweety, How many times have i had to tell you? Your much to sickly to be outside performing for the towns people. They'll be the death of you-," She peered at Drocell's dirt stained face and frowned, " You've been in the city again haven't you?

" Mother I just cant help it, the people are so lively and the air is filled with wonderful music!"

She wiped the dirt from his face with her apron and continued, " The air is much to thick for you, Your lucky you can breath in such a heavy atmosphere!"

He lowered his head in apology, " Im sorry mother, I wont do it again,"

With a sigh his mother pat the top of his head and smiled sweetly," Your such a good boy. I couldn't have asked for a better son,"

And with that he climbed the stairs to his room and plopped down on his bed admiring the colorful collection of puppets which hung from the ceiling. He closed his eyes calmly and began to sing to himself,A song he had heard many times before and would surely hear again.

~London bridges falling down, falling down, London bridges falling down~

~My fair lady~

He must have been overcome by sleep for he awoke to another violent coughing fit. Sitting up he looked at his bloodied hands and cursed silently to himself. It was getting worse. He was lucky if he could make it through the approaching winter.

Firmly wiping his hands on his shirt he made it downstairs to where his mother was preparing supper. She looked up from the pot of soup gesturing to his shirt, " Have you gotten worse?"

" Im afraid so mother, I don't think i'll be able make it through winter..." His eyes filled with tears which he quickly wiped away before his mother could see.

She put her hands on his shoulders gently, " Dont say things like that, I promise we'll find a way to make you better. Now go see your father. He has work for you,"

His father was in his workshop as usual, his work was famous all around Europe, and you couldn't find a more beautiful doll for miles.

His father looked up wearily," ahh Drocell your finally up. Theres something i want you to help me with." Pointing to a pile of old dolls which had been neglected by customers. " I want you to polish them and make them all pretty, you hear? when your finished you can go play outside, or whatever it is you do out there."

Drocell's face lit up and he got to work quickly, It didn't take to long to finish and as he placed the last doll on the window sill he saw a small white flake hit the iced ground. This small flake was followed by many more, showing for a promising blizzard.

Drocell frowned and shrugged grabbing his coat and running full speed out the door before either of his parents could notice. He skidded around street corners taking care not to slip on black ice. The path he had memorized was dark as usual and as he avoided the rats scurrying near his feet he heard it. The familiar melody which had brought him here time and time again. Looking up at the brightly lit windows he searched for it, the music box that never failed to play no matter when he visited. climbing the icy fire escape ladder he made his way to the window. As he sat down on the top bar of the ladder he began to sing along, though his singing was occasionally interrupted by a session of bloody coughs.

~London Bridges falling down, London Bridges Falling Down~

~ My fair lady~

As the third hour passed the music box came to a clicking stop. Shaking himself out of his daze he climbed back down the escape and hurried back to the shop ignoring the freezing wind. Slowly opening the back door to the shop he peered into the warm room looking for signs of his parents. with no one in sight he entered the house and tiptoed up the stairs.

thinking he was in the clear he opened his door and to his surprise he saw his mother sitting on his bed looking VERY displeased. Her arms were folded across her chest and without a word she pointed for Drocell to sit down next to her. Slowly he walked to the bed and sat down hesitantly. There was a long silence until finally his mother sighed and said, " Drocell honestly, I was worried sick about you. You cant go out in this cold weather, ESPECIALLY in your condition. Do you want to get worse? huh?

Drocell shook his head sadly.

She put a warm hand to his forehead, " Your burning up Drocell. If you get a cold your done for. I don't think your body can handle catching even the slightest illness right now. Now get in bed! And no more going outside, Not even for performing!" She stood up suddenly and stormed out of the room slamming the door behind her.

Drocell was dumbfounded as he crawled under the covers and as he lay down he felt the worst stabbing pain in his chest. He sat up abruptly, doubled over in pain on his bed he coughed uncontrollably until he felt he couldn't breath. The room began to spin and everything went black.

When he opened his eyes again his mothers teary eyes were the first thing he saw, She hastily grabbed his hands and kissed them," Drocell sweety you woke up! Its been over a week! We were so worried you would never open your eyes again" She wiped her eyes and sighed in relief," What am i saying, Of course you would have woken up. I promised you you would get better!" She laughed worriedly and kissed his forehead before getting up and walking to the door. " You'll be just fine, In fact you'll probably be able to get out of bed soon!" She silently walked out of the room closing the door behind her.

Drocell blinked and rubbed his throat, He shivered and pressed his face against the frosty windows. There was a good foot or so of snow covering the ground and the sun was beginning to set.

" when I get better, Im going to steal it. I don't care about the consequences, I must have it!" He sighed happily and sunk back under the covers. He was silent for a few minutes before he threw off his covers and jumped out of bed. " What am i saying? Im never going to get better. And if i don't do it soon i'll die before i get the chance. I have nothing to loose!"

Assuming his mother was guarding the doors he went to his window and quietly slid it open. He stepped out onto the icy ledge and lowered himself to the second floor roof. Landing with a thud he jumped down into the snow. Racing around street corners he felt his chest tightening, It wasn't long until he was gasping for breath at the bottom of the ladder. Gathering his remaining strength he limply climbed up to the 2nd floor window. The box was silent but it was there, slipping his fingers under the wooden window frame he lifted it with ease. Surprised it wasn't locked he clasped his bony fingers around the glossy mahogany box. Tucking it into his shirt carefully he climbed down the ladder. Half way to the ground he felt his legs begin to shake under him. He gasped for air as his legs gave out limply under him

The familiar smell of wood shavings filled his nose and he attempted lifting his head. It was gently pushed back down to the pillow. A mysterious voice instructed him not to move much and to remain as calm as possible. when he opened his eyes at first everything was blurry, But soon he could make out the shape of a tall young woman with long white hair. She smiled sweetly at him and sat down on the bed. " Drocell my dear," Her voice was quiet and calming but it seemed to have an eerie manor to it. " Your a very lucky boy you know. If you were lying there any longer you would have frozen to death," Her smiled turned to a frown filled with remorse and she was quite for a long time. Drocell was about to ask her who she was when she began again, " I'm so sorry, If I hand found you earlier you might still have the use of your legs..."

"My legs!" Drocell shot up rapidly, " I cant use my legs?

She put and icy hand on Drocell's head to lower him back to the pillow, " Yes. It seems that from the fall and the hypothermia you've caught your legs are in a permanent shock, But luckily, I can fix you!" And with that she left the room, an evil smile spread across her thin lips and she laughed quietly to herself.

An hour later his mother walked into the room holding something behind her back, she placed it on the night stand and he realized it was the music box, Still in perfect condition after the fall. She wound it tightly and sat down. " This nice woman has told us she knows how to make you well again!" Her face was bright and for once in a long time she was truly happy. " And she doesn't even want our money, Its a miracle Drocell all she wants is a doll from your father! Oh Im so happy I could almost cry!" She paused noticing Drocell wasn't looking as enthusiastic as she." whats the matter sweety? Aren't you happy? You'll be better for good now!"

"Mother, I don't trust this woman. She must want more than just a doll. What exactly did she tell you?" He looked at his mother.

" All she told us was that she needed our cooperation and a doll. Sweety at this point we have to try everything we can...You only have two months left to live." Her expression changed from pure joy to sorrow in a split second.

The door creaked open suddenly and his father walked in followed by the mysterious woman. "She's going to tell us exactly what she needs from us in order to make you well again." He smiled at Drocell and sat down next to his wife.

"Precisely." Her beautiful voice hissed, She held up a piece of paper for Drocell's father. He took it an examined it very closely.

"What is it dear?" His wife questioned while looking over his shoulder, "Oh, Its a design for a doll. It even has the perfect measurements, but? Its near 6ft tall and there are no features. What do you want this doll to look like madam?

She held out her long finger pointing it at the still shocked Drocell. "I believe its an easy enough task, yes? I would like my doll to look exactly like your son, But! I have one other demand. It can't be just a simple doll, No. I want a puppet!

" A puppet?" His father gasped. " That big? It'll take weeks if not months to build that. Are you crazy?

Her eyes burned a fiery red now, " QUIET! DO YOU WANT YOUR SON TO DIE?

He hung his head, " No miss, Thats the last thing we want."

" Good! Thats what I thought!" She turned and just before leaving the room she added, " Exactly two months from now I will take my claim and heel your son," She turned quickly with a sickening look in her eyes, " But if you fail!" She giggled as she continued, " If you fail I will kill your son right before your eyes with my own hands, All illnesses aside." She laughed as she glided out of the room and down the stairs leaving no traces behind.

They sat there in silence for a long time, staring blankly at the doll instructions. His father stood up quietly taking the paper with him, " Well, This wont build itself now will it?" He stretched and cracked his knuckles, " The design is almost 6ft tall, I'll need a lot of supplies Hun." He gestured his hand for his wife to come and he walked out of the room with her following.

Drocell was left in the cold empty silence of his room. Humming to himself he picked up one of the puppets that lay untouched at the end of his bed. Brushing the dust from its clothes he examined the the blue design stamped under his right eye. It was a fleur Delli, The mark his father put on all of his creations. Smiling he wrapped his clammy fingers around the wooden planks holding the strings. With no effort at all the puppet danced merrily as he waved his hand back and forth. As he watched the porcelain legs of the elegant puppet moving swiftly through the air he frowned. Grabbing the puppet around the waist with his free hand he crumpled up the string and folded the puppet over itself. Taking a deep breath in he tightened his grip and threw it. Tiny shards of porcelain scattered across the floor and the broken puppet lay in a sad heap near the wall.

The time ticked by and soon the first month had passed, The doll was progressing nicely, but slowly... To slowly. His father was working his fingers to the bone and was up day and night with no sleep. His mother was only seen at breakfast, lunch, and dinner when she brought Drocell his meals, But other than that she was constantly downstairs assisting his father. As for Drocell he could barely keep his eyes open for more than an hour at a time.

Finishing the left over soup from three days before Drocell looked up at the calendar hanging near his bedside, January 30th. Only one more day until she would return taking with her the doll, or Drocell's life. Placing his empty bowl on the nightstand he drifted off to sleep.

Downstairs his father was putting the finishing touches on the dolls features, and stamping his trade mark Fleur Delli under the right eye. His mother was sitting beside him working on a blue and red suit for the doll to wear. An empty expression filled her face as she sewed on the last button. Sitting up silently and putting down the needle she help it up for him to see. Smiling he took it from her, carefully dressing the doll. He clothed the rest of the doll with the best pants and shoes he could find. Placing it upright in a chair he studied it for a long while, looking at it from every angle.

"somethings missing..." Scratching his chin he continued to stare. "Ah- Ha!" He snapped his fingers and ran upstairs triumphantly. He came back downstairs moments later holding a top hat with a large red feather tucked into the brim. Placing it on the dolls head he looked up at the clock, 7:30 Am, The last day. He held his wifes hand nervously and they both waited in silence.

At exactly 10:00pm the welcome bell to the shop jingled and in stepped the white haired woman. She wore a white lace dress with a tight corset. A silk ribbon was wrapped around her waist forming a large bow that hung loosly off her back. He long hair was pulled back and covered by a white bonnet. In her hands she held a silver bound book, a large qhite quill was placed between the pages.

Without a word she approached the doll, stretching out her long fingers to brush them against the cloth skin. Putting her fingers to her lips she smiled, " Its flawless, absolutely perfect," Gracefully walking up the stairs she waved for them to follow. Half way up the stairs the turned with a scowl on her face, " WELL? Bring the doll! Or did you assume it would bring itself?"

They looked at each other dumbfounded by her attitude, But without a word of protest they collected the doll and followed her to Drocell's room.

Slamming the door open she marched up to the sleeping Drocells bedside, Sliding her long fingers down his throat. Her eyes turned from innocent to blazing as she closed her hand around his neck, Squeezing his neck with all her strength. Gasping for breath Drocell opened his eyes, as he tried to pry her fingers off she lifted his limp body out of bed. His mother and father dropped the doll in shock and ran to stop her, But before they could reach her she violently threw Drocell to the ground placing her heeled boot on his head,Lauging she said " Ooh I just couldnt resist the urge! You should have seen your hideous faces!"

Removing her boot from his head she strutted over to his parents, grabbing both there wrists and shoving them to the wall. Licking her lips she took the quil from the book and pulled out a crisp white letter. Openeing it gently she repeated her terms of serivce., " I believe I told you that I would heel your son if you cooperated and made me the most beautiful doll correct?"

They both shoke their heads timidly in agreement.

"good! Now I just need you to cooperate! So please sign this" She held out the contents of the envelope which was just a simple piece of white paper with three empty lines at the bottom. Handing his father the quill she continued her voice calm but demanding. " when you sign this it means you are giving me anything I need to heel your son. You must be preapared to hand over anything of yours for his life. Well anything other than money that is!" She smiled playfully.

Placing the quill to the paper his father attempted a signature, " Why isnt the ink working Miss? We are supposed to sign here arent we?"

"Hahaha! How foolish of me! I forgot that part!" Taking the quill from him she grabbed his wrist and dug the tip of the quill into his flesh. Smiling she handed it to his father who was trying not to scream while holding his bleeding arm. He took the quill weakly and signed his name still struggling not to cry out in pain. " Your next my dear!" Handing the bloody quill to his mother she looked at the floor where Drocell laid struggling to get to his feet, a look of shear terror on his face.

Hesitantly taking the quill she lightly pricked the top of her finger, signing her name neatly and swiftly. She held her husbands hand and hugged him, silently whispering he would be fine.

The woman walked towards Drocell and knelt down next to him. Gently helping him up onto the bed she sat down next to him, " Now my dear Drocell, the time has come for me to make you well again. Are you ready?" she ran her fingers through his orange hair and hugged him tightly. " It wont hurt you at all~" Taking his arms and tying them behind his back with a beautiful white satin ribbon, she stood and took a dagger from her boot. " But I never said it would'nt hurt them!"

There was a flash of light and the next thing Drocell saw where his parents sinking to the ground. The woman sat in the middle of the floor holding the doll in her lap, the blood forming a pool around her. Drocell stared in horror, mouth open unable to move or make a sound. The entire room shown whith a gold white light giving the room a peacful aura despite the situation. He stared as she stretched out her hand for him to take. The light of the room seemed to move towards her as a beautiful pair of white feathered wings composed themselves on her back.

Drocell looked at his back noticing the ribbon was untied, he moved his hands infront of him unable to stop himself. And without even realizing it he stood, his feet moved themselves towards the angelic woman. The tried fighting it but he wasnt strong enough, His hand reached hers and she gripped it softly. She smiled and placed her cold hand under his chin, " When you wake my dear boy you wont remember anything about your past. You wont feel emotions nor pain. And you will be my loyal slave, You will serve me until you can no longer move. You are my puppet." She pulled the knife from Drocells chest as he sunk onto her lap. His blood pooled over the floor drenching the contract in his blood.

" The contract is completed, dear boy. Welcome to my world"

The streets of London were dark that night, pacing the streets aimlessly he sang. Spinning the manogany handle of the music box

~London Bridges falling down, London bridges falling down~

~My fair lady~


End file.
